GWH 1/32 Curtiss 81A-2 Hawk - Flying Tiger

scvrobeson · October 3, 2025

The new headrest looks extremely nice John. The cockpit looks fantastic so far.

Matt

Uncarina · October 3, 2025

I like it a lot!

Cheers, Tom

MikeMaben · October 3, 2025

:speak_cool:

ChuckT · October 3, 2025

That cockpit is looking great. Love the mods to the headrest.

AngryJazz_Models · October 3, 2025

That headrest looks so much better! Well done!

And the rest of the cockpit is stunning. Colors and weathering - wow!

Thunnus · October 3, 2025

Thanks for the positive comments!

The cockpit floor, which is also the top of the wing, has been painted but not yet fully weathered. There are also a couple of Quinta instruments that have not yet been attached.

The fuselage interior walls have been weathered to match the painted sidewalls. This was done by splattering a dark pastel wash, letting it soak in and dry and then trying to remove it with a moist cloth. Because of the flat finish, stains are left behind, which is what I want.

This is a good time to check how the cockpit components fit together and within the fuselage, checking for any potential trouble spots.

Before I start gluing the cockpit together and inserting it into the fuselage, I need to do something regarding the side windows behind the pilot.

Copicops · October 3, 2025

I really like the weathering you did on the cockpit, thanks for explaining your techniques, they are very effective.

Diego.

Shoggz · October 4, 2025

So glad you aren’t using Imgur as your photo store John, so us UK folk can see your brilliant progress!

Greif8 · October 4, 2025

Wow! Superb work John. Your photography is also excellent, something I really struggle with.

Ernest

tomg · October 4, 2025

Yep - beautiful

scvrobeson · October 4, 2025

It's looking really great John. Really like all the differing colors in the cockpit, they really give the eye lots to look at. Certainly going to enjoy where it goes next.

Matt

Thunnus · October 4, 2025

Thanks guys! Appreciate the feedback!

The side windows... I don't know why GWH and a few other manufacturers make clear parts without frames but I really don't like it. The thickness of the plastic + the butt joint right at the junction between the clear part and frame = a very visible and distracting seam. So I have a plan to address this. If it works, I'll treat the windscreen, which has a similar joint, the same way.

First I am going to paint the area behind the windows. Per archive photos of AVG Tigers, this area should be in the camo colors, not the interior cockpit colors. I've chosen Mr Hobby Aqueous Dark Green H73 and Mr Hobby Aqueous Brown FS30219 for the camo colors. The caps for the fuel tank (red) and oil tank (yellow) have been painted and glued into place. Hard to see but I've weathered the caps by dry-brushing a metallic color and giving the caps a brown wash.

The side windows are then glued into place using Tamiya Extra Thin. Luckily, the fit is very good. Before attachment, I scanned the windows to use them as templates to cut masks. Even from a straight on view, the joint is very visible... it's worse when viewed at an angle.

A temporary mask is applied to protect the clear part from the next step. A small bead of black CA glue is carefully applied around the seams.

The glue seam is carefully sanded smooth. After the temporary mask is removed, the windows are buffed with Micromesh and then polished using the Novus product. The joints look horrible but the surface is smooth, which is the important thing.

A painting mask is then placed over the side windows. They are purposefully re-sized so that paint edge is inset of the glue joint, hopefully helping to hide the messiness of the seams.

I want to verify if the inset is sufficient so after a test spray of Neutral Gray, the masks are pulled off. There are some little gaps and edges that need to be cleaned up but the overall goal is achieved.

The temporary gray paint is removed and the windows are polished and ready for the final paint masks.